"I think he averages 48 or 49 in Test cricket, which is an amazing effort. We know how good a player he is.

"Opening the batting in England can be really difficult, particularly if you’re a left-hander and Stuart Broad’s bowling at you."

Warner's Test average dropped from 48.20 at the start of the Ashes to 45.47 by the time Broad had removed him seven times and Jofra Archer three.

But fifteen of Warner's 21 Test centuries have come in Australia, where he averages 59.64, and Paine believes the batsman remains a positive influence on the team.

"That was a difficult period but David - the way he was around our group as a senior player was outstanding," Paine said.

David Warner was Stuart Broad's bunny throughout the Ashes. Credit: Getty

"It’s easy to do that when you’re going well but to have him still upbeat and still pushing others to get better when he was going through a rough patch himself was great to see."

Warner's struggles came as he and Smith bore the brunt of English fans' boos and jeers throughout the Cricket World Cup and again throughout the Ashes.

Whether Warner cops anything from local cricket fans this summer remains to be seen but his captain expects it to be water off a duck's back.

"I think England holds you in pretty good stead for that," Paine said.

"You’ve got to have pretty thick skin to be an international sportsman as it is. I think they’ve handled themselves really well, I think they can be really proud of the way they’ve come back into international cricket."